Is the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) Trade Agreement Good for America?

"My understanding is that it does advance the ball. When I say advance the ball, my understanding is that it is more free trade than not. Is it a perfect document? Based upon what I understand it is not, but I could not tell you what the specifics are for why that's not the case other than that it's better than nothing given the current state of trade. So I would be in support of TPP."

"I have been trying to learn as much as I can about the [Trans-Pacific Partnership] agreement, but I'm worried. I'm worried about currency manipulation not being part of the agreement. We've lost American jobs to the manipulation that the countries, in particularly in Asia, have engaged in. I'm worried that the pharmaceutical companies may have gotten more benefits and patients and consumers -- fewer.

I think that there are still a lot of unanswered questions, but for me, it really comes down to those three points that I made...

What I know about it, as of today, I am not in favor of what I have learned about it."

During the Oct. 13, 2015 Democratic debate in Las Vegas, Hillary Clinton said of her formerly pro statement, "I did say, when I was secretary of state, three years ago, that I hoped it would be the gold standard. It was just finally negotiated last week, and in looking at it, it didn't meet my standards. My standards for more new, good jobs for Americans, for raising wages for Americans. And I want to make sure that I can look into the eyes of any middle-class American and say, 'this will help raise your wages.' And I concluded I could not."]

"If you think corporate personhood is a bad idea, just wait for corporate nationhood. In fact, right now, the Obama Administration and bi-partisan supporters are trying to ram through Congress a secret global deal. The Trans Pacific Partnership or TPP.

This backroom deal gives corporations more power than nations. It lets multinational corporations - foreign powers - overrule our laws, including critical protections for workers, our health, and the environment, for the safety of our food, our air, and our water, the security of our bank accounts, our access to the internet, and so much more. It even overrides the Constitution. People call it NAFTA on steroids, because it intensifies the offshoring of our jobs and puts downward pressure on wages. It enforces this new world governance by creating a special global court, consisting of 3 super judges, who are appointed by the world bank. In short, the TPP is a Trojan horse for a global corporate coup. But the most important thing about the TPP is that we can stop it."

"I have no problem supporting TPP. We've worked with some of our most important allies in negotiations to help make this possible — and asked them to take political risks of their own to open their markets to American goods, agricultural products, and services...

I know there is political risk in supporting free trade. TPP is President Obama's biggest trade initiative...

It would strengthen our ties to our allies throughout the Pacific region, including our close allies and partners in Australia, Mexico and Japan. We could use more friends, frankly.

More than that, free trade is essential to creating the sustained, high rate of growth that we need to create well-paying jobs, new opportunities for American farmers and businesses, and even greater access to a global supply of goods and services."

"There are things in the TPP I'm not enthusiastic about, certainly [including] disputes that are supposed to be looked at by, you know, a UN commission or a World Trade Organization. I don't like to subject anything in America to outside forces that might be able to impact our laws. That's a caveat. And I have to be assured that they don't have influence over us. But, I think overall it helps to level the playing field...

But the problem is when we begin to slap tariffs on things and get into these trade wars, who has to pay for that? It's the guy who goes to Walmart and Target. He's the one who gets slammed by that. So we have to be looking at things that will help the middle class and the poor to once again be able to have some buying power. This would help them—there's no question about that. So, I don't want to throw out the baby with the bath water. Would I prefer to negotiate a better trade agreement? Absolutely. If this is the best we can get, I would take it rather than allow the people of the country to be suffering further economically."

"Millions of the best jobs in this century will depend on international trade. It is more important than ever that Congress give the President Trade Promotion Authority so we can finalize the Trans-Pacific Partnership and the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership. These agreements will create millions of jobs and cement U.S. strategic partnerships in Asia, South America, and Europe."

"Chris Christie: My problem with TPP, because you're right, I have not been able to read the whole thing, and I'm concerned about all the different exceptions and side letters that are being referred to because that always is a problem. But, I will tell you this. As a blanket matter, I wouldn't trust one thing negotiated by the team of Obama, Clinton, and Kerry. Not one thing.

[Laura] Ingraham: So, your advice to Paul Ryan and Mitch McConnell on this would be...

Christie: Vote no or don't vote at all. And, wait for a new president to come in to negotiate a deal that would actually be in the interest of the American people and the interests of American workers."

"Once again, American workers are getting punched in the gut by Washington because this deal is a handout to insiders, interest groups, Obama's allies and Asia... When it comes to negotiating with foreign countries, the Obama Administration gets rolled like sushi, and this TPP deal is more of the same. I can't understand why American workers would trust Obama on a trade deal that affects 40 percent of the world’s economy."

"Yeah, I do oppose it [the Trans-Pacific Partnership]. What's wrong with it is first and foremost that we're not allowed to read it before representatives vote on it. What's wrong with it is that right now what we should be doing are things that make our economy stronger here at home. And that's my concern, that the Trans-Pacific Partnership, this deal, is a race to the bottom, a chasing of lower wages abroad. And I believe that that does nothing to help us build a stronger economy here at home."

"The Senate just put the interests of powerful multi-national corporations, drug companies and Wall Street ahead of the needs of American workers. If this disastrous trade agreement [TPP] is approved, it will throw Americans out of work while companies continue moving operations and good-paying jobs to low-wage countries overseas.

Bad trade deals like the proposed Trans-Pacific Partnership are a major reason for the collapse of the American middle class and the increase in wealth and income inequality in the United States. This agreement, like bad trade deals before it, would force American workers to compete with desperate workers around the world – including workers in Vietnam where the minimum wage is 56-cents an hour."

"I think under no circumstances should the TPP be voted on during a lame duck session. And, in fact, if a Republican wins in 2016, which I believe will happen, I don’t think we should have a lame duck session. No conservative would want a bunch of members who have just been defeated or retiring, passing big government, liberal policies with Obama in office. TPP needs to be voted on where members are accountable, and I’ll tell you, I am very, very skeptical about TPP. This thing is 6,000 pages, it is negotiated by a president who has undercut American workers at every level, and I think it is a mistake to be undercutting the working men and women of this country."

"Free trade is a good thing and I would love to be able to support this thing [Trans-Pacific Partnership], but unfortunately we don't know what's in it--and that's the problem. We've seen too many deals in this administration where they sound like a good thing... And so, I think we need to see the details. It's hard for me to understand why the president--who's pitching this deal so hard--won't just give us some understanding of what's in it. For example, one of the purposes of this deal was to solidify our leadership in a region so that we could push back a little against a newly assertive China. Now we're hearing that maybe China could join this deal in a couple years. Is that true? Is it not? I don't know. We need to know those kinds of details, which are pretty important."

"My feeling is that I'm pretty much for open (trade), but I think the American workers have been shafted... We don't go aggressively against the dumping. So what we do is we crush out own company and crush our own people. I'm for open (trade), but I want to make sure that the workers in this country are protected... I've never been a total free trader, because I think that the rules ought to apply to other countries like they apply to us."

"I've told leadership I'm a 'no' vote [on trade promotion authority (TPA)]... I'm hesitant to give blanket authority on stuff we haven’t seen. I'm not saying there wouldn't be a time I could be for it [Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP)], if I'd seen the trade agreement, and it's fine...

I still might vote for the trade agreement [TPP], but I hate giving up power. We give up so much power from Congress to the presidency, and with them being so secretive on the treaty, it just concerns me what's in the treaty."

[Editor's Note: In addition to the above Not Clearly Pro or Con statement, Rand Paul also made the following Not Clearly Pro or Con statement in an Oct. 2014 policy address at the Center for the National Interest, available at paul.senate.gov:

"President George W. Bush understood that part of the projection of American power is the exporting of American goods and culture. His administration successfully brokered fourteen new free trade agreements and negotiated three others that are the only new free trade agreements approved since President Obama took office. Instead of just talking about a so-called 'pivot to Asia,' the Obama administration should prioritize negotiating the Trans-Pacific Partnership by year's end."]